Power Home Technologies ‘Pays It Forward’ to Help Elderly Widow

When learning about a 76-year-old widow slept with a hatchet under her pillow for protection after she had been robbed, a Power Home Technologies employee decided to pay it forward and installed a security alarm system for the woman free of charge.

I love how much the people in this industry actually care for others. That means a lot because while offering exceptional customer service is key to successfully operating businesses, it’s having compassion and empathy that truly puts the icing on the cake.

Call me a sap for a heartwarming story, but I couldn’t help but feel overjoyed when I received a press release Monday morning from security dealer Power Home Technologies (PHT). The release mentioned that PHT employee David Kershaw was watching his local news station WKTR-TV in Virginia Beach, Va., when he learned about a widow who had been sleeping with a hatchet under her pillow. In late November, an intruder came into her home and stole the gun that she used to protect herself. Undoubtedly, 76-year-old Camilla Wheelock — who lives alone, mind you — was at her wits end.

I contacted PHT CEO Ben Brookhart for more information who told me that Wheelock’s husband passed away nine months ago and had left her a gun so she would feel safe without him. In addition to stealing the weapon, the intruder also snatched Wheelock’s purse during the Nov. 28 break-in.

After Kershaw informed PHT about the story, he installed a system that included three door contacts, a motion detector, a keypad, a smoke detector and a medical pendant for Wheelock. The company waived the installation and activation fees for the woman, and did not charge her for any of the equipment installed. The monthly rate is just over $1 a day, Brookhart says.

But I think what stood out most to me is that Kershaw did something extremely selfless — he waived his commission on the sale to offer Wheelock all of this equipment to help her feel protected.

“David has told the customer that she can call him anytime to come back and go over the system if she is confused by anything,” Brookhart explains. “He told her that she could call him day or night.”

Brookhart is proud that his employee has taken the extra steps to make sure that Wheelock feels comfortable with her system because not only does it help her feel safe, it also helps combat false alarms.

“AT PHT, we try to give back to every community we service throughout the Southeast,” he says. “This community spirit runs throughout our employees and has helped us to become a company that people love to work for because they know we care. We want to keep our customers for a lifetime, and with great service, that is possible.”

A member of the Monitronics Dealer Program since 2011, PHT has grown to more than $18 million in gross sales and has extended its service offering throughout 16 states.

Do you have any similar stories about how your company paid it forward? Leave your experiences in the comments section below. The entire SSI team looks forward to reading them!